Leaving everything behind, looking for adventure and freedom...

This accommodation provider has taken action to address one or more issues (whether environmental, social or cultural) which will contribute positively to the long term viability of the destination and hence their site displays a Caring for the destination rating.

Main area of focus in Caring for the Destination:  

Hotel Arqueologo is active on many areas and does everything possible to care for the destination of Cusco.

Detailed description of the Caring for the Destination Initiative: 

Regarding waste management, the staff separates all the waste and sends it to the Sacred Valley or even to Lima where capable companies recycle it.

Every staff member has a good wage and gets rewarded every month with a percentage according to the occupancy of the hotel over the past month. In the cleaning staff there is one employee with a speaking and hearing disability. The entire hotel staff is attending classes every Saturday morning in order to improve their communication with this hard working lady.

Besides these classes, Joel actively supports his employees in taking courses and following studies which will help them to develop into a better employee and grow higher up into the company.  

The policy of the hotel states that the grass is allowed to be yellow in the dry summer. In the rainy season, the rainwater is collected in big underground tanks and is used to irrigate the garden in the hot summer months.

Joel also installed a water filter from Switzerland for his guests in the patio of the hotel. This tap is free of use for the hotel guests and allows them to drink water from the tap which normally not recommended in Cusco.

Besides all these points Joel also collects books and magazines, enough to start four (!!!) different libraries in the Sacred Valley.

Clothes and other things clients forget in their rooms are carefully collected and registered and once a year they select a small local community to receive the donations. With some of the hotel guests they will visit this community and give away all the goods the clients left behind.

Before all the wastewater from the kitchen gets to the sewer system, it has to pass a filter which makes sure no grease is deposed of. The filtered grease is send away to a company which uses it to light up oil burners.  

Of course besides all these points we cannot forget to mention that Joel is hiring only local people and buys his fruits, vegetables and other goods from the local market.